


Embracing the Darkness

by CloakAndDagger88



Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Casual Sex, Established Relationship, F/M, Grief/Mourning, I Don't Even Know, Some Plot, my personal twist on in game missions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:33:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25163203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CloakAndDagger88/pseuds/CloakAndDagger88
Summary: Valia needs a distraction from Cayde's death. Luckily, the Drifter is happy to oblige.
Relationships: The Drifter/Female Guardian (Destiny)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I started writing this not long after the Drifter was introduced in Forsaken. We knew very little about him at the time, so I apologize for any inaccuracies if any. It was previously titled "Save a sparrow, Ride a Cowboy" I took it down to rewrite a lot of it for reasons I will not go into detail about (long story). I will try to release each chapter every few days or so. I have 8 chapters currently written out, and many more in the works.

Valia had spent all morning fighting it out on the derelict. She loved a good gambit match, banking motes, invading, it was exhilarating. The tower needed something like this for a while, and with the very recent death of Cayde-6, she needed a distraction. She needed the Drifter. She didn't know what to think of him yet, but she knew he was starting to grow on her. It wasn't long before she found herself going into gambit just to see that handsome, rugged face.

The way he'd strut into the transmat bay, his jade coin flashing tantalizingly between his fingers. The man had swagger and he was effortlessly sexy. It came natural to him and it frustrated her. Besides, she liked what he had to offer, so she would play his game...for now.

She pulled her helmet off as she came out of transmat letting her hood down, she brushed her sapphire blue bangs out of her eyes only for it to fall back into place.  
"Leaving me so soon? You were kicking so much ass in there!" The Drifter teased.

"You know I always come back for more," she replied with a smirk, as she sauntered off back to the tower.

"Looking forward to it, sister."

Valia sat at the bar at the Ramen Shop staring blankly at the counter. Relaxed, guns holstered, and completely off guard. She could do that here. All the chatter and racket in the tower bazaar became nothing more than white noise as the shop's aroma from the boiling spices engulfed her.

"Incoming message from Bülvai" her Ghost broke the trance.

"Hey Cloak, a group of guardians killed Riven, Petra has something for us. Revenant and I are en route to the Dreaming City."

"What's the problem?" she asked nonchalantly.

"Taken. At the observatory, the Oracle is in danger."

She raised her hand at the shop's cook "Make that spicy ramen to go, please?" the cook nodded in acknowledgment. "I'll meet you there," she said in response.

Valia landed in the Divalian Mists in the Dreaming City and knew right away something was terribly wrong. Black oily specks littered the foggy air, over the rocky hill in the horizon Taken corruption had started to spread on the grand majestic towers in the distance. She let out a worrisome sigh.

"What have we done?" she whispered to herself.

Valia heard the orders from the Queen's mouth herself,

_"Go into the heart of the city. Kill that creature, and extract its heart. Let me fulfill one last wish."_

Did she know this would happen? No...she couldn't think about that right now, Petra needed them. Bülvai and Revenant were at the top of the hill ahead of her. Patrolling and taking pot shots at scattered Taken and Scorn. Revenant-24 and Bülvai were Valia's fire team, but they weren't just a fire team, they were family. They had been running together for decades, and the three of them together were a dream team. Bülvai, a human Titan, and Revenant-24, an Exo Warlock, had formed a brotherly bond and seemed to work in tandem on the battlefield.

"Are you gonna waste your ammo on these grunts, or are we going to deal with the bigger problem?" she asked as she approached them.

"Just waiting on you, Boss," Bülvai replied without even taking his eye off his scope, shooting a Scorn Chieftain in the head with his rifle.

Valia snorted at "Boss" she summoned her Ghost and spawned her Sparrow.

"We've already spoken with Petra and Sedia before you got here. We just need to deal with the Taken and hopefully, Petra can send in reinforcements." Revenant-24 chimed as him and Patrick mounted their Sparrows.

"Well then let's not waste any more time," Valia replied with urgency.

She soared over the hill, her Sparrow singing and whistling in the wind as she bobs and weaves between hostile enemies, their bullets whizzing by her. A stray bullet here and there manages to hit her but her shields shrug it off.  
She sees her fire team hot on her heels on her radar, their Sparrows side by side make a hauntingly beautiful song.

It wasn't long before they started to approach the Observatory, they could see Taken infesting the area.  
They hop off their Sparrows and Bülvai and Revenant get into position to plan a strategy. Valia races past them guns blazing, she tosses a vortex grenade in the middle of a group of cursed thrall, disintegrating them into the void.

"What's she doing running ahead like that?" Revenant asks as he watches her run in the fray carelessly. "Cloak!" he calls out to her but she continues firing at will, ignoring her fire team.

Bülvai spots a Taken sniper targeting Valia, he tosses his fiery hammer at the sniper before it can take its shot. "Alright, I'll cover her. Keep Goldie Locks off our backs."

Goldie Locks was Bülvai's nickname for the Chieftains and Knights that were commanding the smaller, lesser ranks on the field.

Revenant calls down a storm, the air crackles, and sizzles, electricity encasing him. He smiles eagerly "My pleasure."

He levitates toward the Chieftain, its already taunting him, swirling its fiery lantern and charging him. Revenant crashes into him sparks spewing from his hands as he starts to circle the Chieftain avoiding its attacks, drawing it away from Bülvai and Valia. With focused determination and will Revenant eventually reduces the Scorn Chieftain into a pile of dust and bones.

He looks over to the rest of his fire team. Valia completely ignoring her six and radar, if it wasn't for Bülvai covering her she would've already been swarmed by thrall, twice now. This wasn't like her to act so air-headed and careless, like a greenhorn with something to prove. He could tell she was on the battlefield, fighting, but her mind was somewhere else. They continue to fight their way around the Observatory, the way they came was blocked off. Hoards of Taken of all rank and race littered the path; psions, shriekers, phalanxes, and wizards. The Taken were throwing everything they had to obtain the Oracle.

Valia went down hard and fast as a shrieker blasted her with its heavy shots.

"Guardian down." Bülvai's Ghost rang in his head.

He took out the shrieker with one shot with his Sleeper rifle and after a few seconds Valia's Ghost had already revived her.

Again, Revenant takes note of Valia's rookie behavior. They clear out the last of the Taken in the courtyard and hear more teleporting inside the Observatory.

"The Oracle!" Valia shouted, worried that one of her peoples' most irreplaceable relics was compromised.

"We got it, don't worry," Bülvai assured her.

They raced into the Observatory, wasting no time. Taken surrounding them they stand back to back. Revenant summons a healing rift beneath them, granting them over shields. Bülvai puts down a rally barricade and Valia vanishes into the void.

Bülvai and Revenant can see blinks and flashes of Valia's spectral blades dropping enemies around them, they finish off any stragglers she misses. Just as the last Taken falls Valia reappears out of the void, an Ogre materializes behind her, instantly crushing her before she can dodge out of the way. Bülvai screams with rage, burning with Solar light he conjures his fiery hammer slamming it into the ground sending trails of explosive fire towards the Ogre.

"Go get her!" He bellowed at Revenant.

The firefight is too hot, too dangerous. Her Ghost cannot risk reviving her, not after what happened to Cayde's Ghost. He follows Bülvai's orders and runs over to Valia reviving her with restorative light. Just as quickly as she went down, she was back up on her feet again. Revenant pulled Valia to her feet and something caught her eye on the upper floors above them.

"Up there," She points up showing Revenant what she see's "scorch canons."

He looks to confirm what she says "I see them. Go, while he has that thing distracted."

Valia vaults into the air effortlessly with two quick jumps landing right on the second floor of the observatory. She grabs a scorch cannon and calls out to Revenant. "Eyes up, guardian!" tossing it down to him, he catches it effortlessly.

She runs for a second canon only to be violently pushed off the ledge, slamming her into the wall across the room, breaking her shields. She screams out in pain, she's hurt, but can still fight.

"Taken portals! Look out!" she alerts her fireteam.

The three start to regroup when another Taken Ogre teleports into the observatory. "Oh C'mon! Another one!?" Valia cried out.

Just then, Petra and three other Queen's Wrath corsairs storm into the room.

"Petra!" Valia exclaims with relieved excitement and renewed morale.

"I told you I'd try to get here with reinforcements, didn't I? Thanks for clearing a path."

Petra signals her corsairs to spread out and keep the Ogre confused and distracted, each taking turns getting it's attention while avoiding its blasts behind the thick pillars.  
Valia and her fireteam, and Petra and her corsairs attack the Ogre on all fronts with unison. It doesn't know who to turn to first and after what seemed like forever, the last Taken Ogre finally laid slain.

"Good work, guardians." Petra praised. "The Oracle remains untouched and safe."

Valia and her team jump down to Petra's level. "All in a day's work," Revenant says confidentially, shaking his hands as if they were burned.

"But why were the Taken here? What do they want with the Oracle?" Petra questioned rhetorically. "I got it from here guardians, I'll let you know if I learn anything new."

"Well boys, it's been fun. Y'all go on ahead, I left some...unfinished business at the tower." Valia says to Bülvai and Revenant.

"What's got you in a hurry?" Bülvai asked.

"Maybe we should be asking 'who'." Revenant said with a knowing look on his face.

Valia felt her face get hot, "Nonsense." she said quickly trying to brush his assumption off as nothing more than idle gossip.

"You're not fooling anyone. Something or someone has you distracted. You were too careless during this entire mission." He tosses his hands in the air showing his annoyance. "Don't think I didn't notice." Revenant finished.

She rolled her eyes and sighed. "I just have a lot on my mind after everything. Stop worrying." she left them in the observatory as she brought out her Ghost going back into orbit.  
  


Valia strolled by the Ramen Shop eyeing the Drifter's corner as she passed. His back was turned and he was rummaging through some crates and boxes. A couple guardians rush by her, pushing her out of the way. Hard enough to catch her off guard and lose her balance but not hard enough to cause offense.

She leans against the wall casually twirling her knife in the air, floating just above her hand trying to mimic Petra's trick. It's clumsily done but she does this as she waits for the other guardians to clear out. After he concludes his business the Drifter gives her a knowing nod and disappears around the corner into a secluded corridor. She knows the signal and follows suit, but once she turned the corner he was gone. Perplexed, she turns around to look behind her in search of him.

"Last I checked you were a Gunslinger, not a Nightstalker." She calls out to nothing. "Come out, come out, wherever you are."

He suddenly grabs her from behind giving her a playful bite on the neck, she lets out a startled gasp.

She turns to him and hits him in the chest. "Don't do that!" she hisses.

The Drifter laughs "I'm sorry, you liked it last time, sister."

"You didn't sneak up behind me last time," she replies with a smirk. "And don't call me that. It's...awkward."

"Ok, kid?"

Valia grimaces, "Worse!"

"Well, what would you like me to call you, princess?"

Valia scoffs at him "Just shut up." She said annoyed, pushing him against the wall and pressing her lips against his.

He indulges and lets her in, surrendering to her. She inhales his scent and drinks in the taste of his tongue dancing alongside hers. She hates how intoxicating he is and groans.  
She wraps her arms around his neck and he brings his hands down, resting them on her waist. He pulls back, breaking their connection and making her lean in for more. She moans at his protest and a devilish grin creeps across his face to see her so wanting.

He grips her waist and spins them around slamming her against the wall. He closes the gap and kisses her first this time, locking their lips together. He starts to grind his pelvis into hers pushing her harder against the wall. She groans in response feeling him grow hard. His mouth gravitates toward her neck, his beard tickling her. He goes to venture further but is stopped by her armor. He lets out an impatient moan.

"This armor needs to come off." He says in a heated tone.

He goes to unhook her cloak off her shoulders but is stopped by Valia's hand. "No," she says, "not here."

"Where then?" he growled going in to ravish her silky blue neck again.

"Back at my place."

"Too far." He says, quickly planting his lips on hers, stopping her from saying anything further. His tongue was invasive and aggressive.

He bends down and grabs her by the thighs picking her up, she instinctively wraps her legs around his waist. He carries her over to a nearby table covered with boxes and junk and clears it with one sweep of his arm and sets her down. The loud crash to the floor made Valia nervous that someone heard.

"Shhh...What if someone hears?"

"They won't. Trust me." he says assuredly.

"How can you be so sure?"

"I took some... precautions before you got here."

"So you were hoping I'd come back?" She asked amused.

"Like you said, you always come back for more." He replied landing another kiss, taking her breath away and making her lean into him.

"Damnit!" she got angry at herself for ever letting him think he had her wrapped around his finger.

Not wanting to delay any more time she doesn't argue and takes his word for it. They undress each other with rushed fingers and bated breath. With her cloak and armor and his leather duster in a pile on the floor, they take a moment to take each other in. He scanned his eyes over her exposed body seeing it marked with scars from all her deaths, he traces a fresh scar on her side he hadn't seen before with his finger. She jerks at his touch, shamed by her increasing imperfections.

"Don't fret, darlin'," he says landing a gentle kiss on the scar tissue "it never bothered me before, did it?"

She trembled feeling his soft embrace, at the same time biting her lip. She grimaced. "That wasn't the deal! Why is he doing that?" she thought to herself.

Valia made it clear to the Drifter when they started this tryst it came with no strings attached, no romantic feelings. This was just for fun, a distraction, nothing more. And at any time this could all end as quickly and suddenly as it started. She couldn't fall for tender touches and sweet nothings. It was too easy. And he happily obliged, after all... His name said it all.

With one quick thrust, he was inside her. Valia let her head fall back, her eyes closed and a deep low moan escaped her lips, feeling him fill her up completely. Her center throbbed and burned at the core as he increased his pace. Her nails dug into his back, clenching and clawing at his sweaty skin. The piercing pain excited him making him thrust harder and faster. She screamed out from his assault.

He places his hand behind her neck and pulls her to him, her mouth captures his neck claiming him. Their flesh pressed against each other in the heat of primal desire she mindlessly rocked her hips, quickening their pace. And for a fleeting moment everything that had been troubling her faded away. She forgot about Cayde, Petra and the Taken, her fire team. All her focus and all her attention were with the Drifter. He was her sweet escape from all the ugly and darkness she faced every day in the Vanguard.

Her body quaked and shook an indication she was about to reach climax. And like a violent explosion, her orgasm erupted from deep within her washing over her in waves of erotic euphoria. Her eyes flashed a bright brilliant blue, brighter than normal and void light swirled around her blue skin making her look otherworldly. Feeling her convulse and spasm around his cock made him come to his peak and together they came.

Valia laid back on the table, limp and completely spent and exhausted. He lays on top of her, their chests heave together catching their breath. After taking a moment to regain their strength he gets up and gets dressed again, handing her cloak and helping her don her armor.

"See you again in a few days." He says with a pleased smirk.

"Maybe you will, maybe you won't." she said pulling her cloak hood up.

He took her chin and pulled her to him stealing one last kiss before parting ways. The spontaneous act sent chills through her body and felt a familiar shock ripple through her body like an electrical current back down to her center.

She broke away. "Stop it!"

"You love it." he said shamelessly with that same devilish grin.

"Oh he's going to be trouble." she thought.

She turned and left him standing there alone in the corridor behind the bazaar. She waited until her back was completely turned to him before smiling. "Damn him," she said under her breath as she disappeared out of his sight into the night.


	2. Chapter 2

Dawn was breaking as Valia exited the Bazaar, heading back upstairs her Ghost floated and bobbed around her head like a carrion fly. "I don't trust him. He's up to no good, mark my words." He said, his small voice etched with worry.

"I know." She replied keeping her voice low.

"As your Ghost, it's my job to aid you against the enemies of Darkness. You were forged in the Light specifically for that reason." Valia continued walking through the tower, passing the gunsmith and cryptarch.

"I know." She said again with less patience.

"He uses the Darkness and wants you to use it against other Guardians. Does that not concern you at all?" Her Ghost went on.

Valia whipped around facing her Ghost "You think I don't know that? I don't need another lecture." her tone was sharp but remained low.

Nothing else in the Vanguard held Valia's interest anymore. She no longer cared about going on strikes, crucible, or even putting together raid teams. Gambit and the Drifter was becoming her only goal. Even if she couldn't help but feel the whole thing was a set up, a trap. She no longer cared if she fell to the Darkness. For the Drifter, she would fall gladly. There was a time before the Red War when she danced in the shadow realm and she thought maybe one last dance would be ok, even if it meant falling from grace. 

Valia knew her Ghost was right, hell, even she didn't trust the Drifter. But despite all his mystery and suspicious use of the Dark she couldn't help but be drawn to him, it was part of his charm. Every fiber of her being screamed at her to stay away, a part of her wanted to run to Zavala and tell him everything. About Gambit, the Drifter, his need for motes, and that he's here in the tower hiding right beneath our noses. She felt like she was sleeping with the devil and she had already sold her soul. But she held her tongue and remained quiet.

"Just remember what side you're on." Her Ghost reminded her and disappeared into her pack.

"My Light is brighter than his Darkness...Little Light." She said to him just before realizing her Ghost already dismissed himself.

"I told you not to call me that." He replied.  
  
Valia opened up her post and started discarding all the junk that slipped through. Kadi 55-30, the postmaster, repeating everything she said three times. Though it was never annoying, Valia always found it kind of cute. She cleared out the last of her mail. "All done, done, done. Good-bye, good-bye, good-bye."

"Guardian." The voice cut deep and reverberated through her and snapped her attention, it was unmistakable. She'd know that voice anywhere. Commander Zavala.

"Commander?" Valia asked, unsure of his reason for approaching her. Half afraid he just overheard her conversation with her Ghost.

"Now that Cayde's killers have been dealt with I hope your thirst for blood has been satisfied. We can't afford any distractions from our purpose."

She nodded in response.

"Good. I have numerous reports of spiked Cabal activity in the EDZ, go see what they're up to and end it."

She shook her head confused. "Cabal? What about the Dreaming City? The Taken there is much worse." She debated to her mistake.

"Let me make myself clear, Guardian. That is Reef territory, not the Vanguard. And you would do well to remember that."

She had to bite her tongue to stop herself from protesting further, she knew not to raise Zavala's ire. "Understood."  
  
Valia made her way to the EDZ, pinging Bülvai and Revenant to help her investigate the Cabal. They grouped up in orbit before heading out.

"Business taken care of, Cloak?" Revenant asked over comms.

"...Yea." She said reluctantly. "Zavala wants us to deal with the Cabal in the EDZ, they're up to something."

"On your lead, Boss," Bülvai replied.

The three of them thoroughly cleared out Firebase Hades in just a little over an hour, their Ghosts scanned and hacked all the consoles they could find, stripped the Cabal database for anything. Nothing came back.

"This is bullshit! There's nothing here, this was a waste of our time!" Valia seethed.

"Zavala wouldn't send us on a ghost chase," Bülvai said.

Valia laughed. "Really? We've dealt with the Cabal already, Ghaul is dead. There is no threat here, just stragglers left from the Red War. Zavala is becoming complacent, we all saw his reaction to Cayde's death."

"You should curb your tongue, Cloak," Bülvai warned.

"Hey, you two, over here!" Revenant called out.

Valia and Bülvai looked behind them back at Revenant. "What is it?" they both asked simultaneously.

"My Ghost just picked up a signal from a beacon, it's originating from somewhere in the Reef," he informed them.

"What kind of signal?" Valia asked.

"It's a false alarm, a diversion. You were right, the threat isn't here. We must tell the Vanguard about this."

Valia shook her head at the ground. "Damn it!" She turned her look back at Revenant "Who sent it? Can you tell?"

"Not yet. Gonna have to give my Ghost some time to triangle it and narrow it down." He told her.

"If it's in the Reef Zavala won't care. He wants nothing to do with that place." Valia told them. "Not since Uldren and his Barons killed Cayde."

"Since when do you always listen to Zavala?" Revenant said with a sly look.

"Guys." Bülvai spoke up in protest. "We can't keep going against Vanguard protocol. It won't look good. We're already playing with fire with Gambit, sooner or later Zavala will find out and we're going to have to deal with that."

"Protocol be damned, the Taken are coming back with a vengeance and the Queen has asked the guardians for help once again. We can't leave the enemies of humanity, the Taken especially, left unchecked." Valia replied.

"We don't answer to the Queen, we answer to the Vanguard," Bülvai said. "Whatever is going on in the Reef with the Taken, the Queen and her Wrath can deal with it."

Valia scoffed. "I can't believe it, you're starting to sound like Zavala. If it wasn't for Riven's influence on Uldren none of this Taken in the Reef shit would've happened..." her voice began to crack "We would still have Cayde."

Bülvai stepped forward and looked at Revenant and then Valia. "And he's been avenged. Zavala warned us of letting our vengeance blind us."

Revenant ignored the other two, leaning over the console his Ghost was busy hacking. His eyes rapidly flashing back and forth staring down at the screen. "Not so fast." He said. "Taken readings are off the charts. I'm going to need Asher's help with decrypting this."

"How long will that take?" Valia asked impatiently. "My trigger finger is getting twitchy."

He rubbed his robotic fingers across his chin keeping his gaze on the console. "Hard to say. A few days, a week maybe. I'm making a hard copy of everything and sending it to him."

"So what now?" Bülvai asked Revenant.

"For now, we go on about our regular routine."

Valia sighed. "Fine, I guess. I still have to fill this bounty for the Drifter. Either of you want to come with?"

"Sure." Revenant replied. "Bülvai and I will run this by the Vanguard. We'll meet you on the derelict."

They summoned their Ghost's and transmatted back to orbit. Valia heading straight to the Drifter's ship.  
  
Valia had the Drifter pinned down, straddling him. She had tiny void anchors tethering his hands back. The cool chill from her void magic covers her skin in goosebumps and hardens her nipples. She kept a slow steady pace rocking her hips back and forth on his cock, just enough to keep him up and attentive. Her mouth grazed his neck, nibbling at his skin. She trails down to his chest, landing a bite on his nipple. He jerks and inhales sharply, thrusting his waist upward, pushing himself deeper inside her. Valia responded with her own sharp inhale of breath, she grips her legs around his waist tightening her hold on him.

"Nu-uh, it's my turn to have my way with you." She scolded.

He laughs, amused by her taking control.

She sits up keeping her hands planted on his chest and starts riding him in faster and longer strides. Her breasts teasing him, bouncing from her movements, just out of reach. He reaches up and tries to grab her, forgetting about his restraints he lets out a low growl. She stops for a moment, catching her breath. "Is that all? We were just getting started." He says.

Valia clasped two fingers over his mouth. "Shush!" she lifts herself up and crawls upward towards him, "I have a better use for that smart mouth." She says sitting on his face.

He smells her heady aroma, thick with arousal. He knows what to do and starts licking and sucking at her clit. She moans and arches her back, gripping his hair in her fist. He keeps his eyes on her watching her writhe on top of him like wrangling a wild bull, her tits rose and fell with her heaving chest. He lands a gentle bite on her clit. She grips his hair tighter and winces.

"No teeth!" she hissed. He chuckles from beneath her.

She moves down, kissing him tasting herself on his lips. She pivots around, turning her back on him going full reverse cowgirl. He smiles his devilish grin. "That's it, Val!"

  
Valia leans down and takes a vice grip on his throbbing shaft at the base and teases the tip of his head with her tongue, tasting his bittersweet precome mixed with her flavor and scent, before taking him all into her mouth. She pushes her ass back into his face and he dives in eagerly without hesitation. The room filled with heavy breaths and deep longing moans. The Drifter starts bucking his pelvis more aggressively, she held his legs down with her hands using solar energy just barely singeing his skin. He lets out a deep guttural groan and she sees his toes curl, she knows he's about to come. She stops and sits up, making him shake impatiently.

"Damn it, woman!" He huffs.

She slides down and sits on his cock, clapping her ass down on his hips. She rides him slow at first, she's not done with him, and he's not finishing until she does. She gradually starts to ride more wildly and savagely when she suddenly felt his hands firmly on both ass cheeks, she yelped out in surprise. Her anchors must have dissipated.

"You're mine now, princess!" He says arrogantly, pushing his thumb into her asshole.

Valia hisses in shock and unexpected pleasure. He kept a tight grip on her ass with his other hand, keeping his thumb inside her. He took control of her body, harshly ramming his cock into her center. She bites her lip in attempt to silence her screams scratching at her throat, she whimpers from the sheer overwhelming sensation of their bodies clashing together in rhythm. She gave in and came, squirting her release over his lap. His nails dug into her skin leaving red imprints on her ass as he finished inside her.

She rolled over onto her back panting. "That wasn't fair!" she said breathlessly.

He chuckled "You forgot, switching elements cancels the other. Rookie mistake."

"It was in the heat of the moment...no pun intended." She replied.

She gets up getting dressed and he does the same. "I should get going, the others will be here soon."

She goes to head for the exit and feels him wrap his arm around her waist from behind. His lips a breath away from her ear. "Come see me afterward." he whispered, "Something I want to show you." Darkness lingered in his voice.

"I... I'll see what I can do. My fireteam will be with me today."

"Good. It'll make you shiver, I promise." his words tickled the nape of her neck. He released his arm, letting her go.  
  
Valia stood on her side of the derelict's barrier with Bülvai and Revenant on each side of her, plus a random guardian. Both teams staring each other down, sizing each other up. The air filled with taunts, howls and war cries as the opposing teams beat their chests and brandished their weapons. The energy in the room stirred something wild and primal within her, she let out her own taunting cry. Her high pitch, feminine voice pierced the air over all the low guttural growls.

The Drifter walks out onto the platform above them standing between the two teams, twirling his green coin. It slid between his fingers like the coiled snake etched into its surface. Valia couldn't control the smirk that crept across her face knowing all too well what those fingers were capable of.

"Eager to get in, are we, Cloak?" Revenant asked curiously.

"Always." she said not even taking her eye off the Drifter.

He tossed the coin into the air. catching it as it came back down and held it out for all to see. "Hive. Bring a sword."

And just like that in a flash, they were on the field. She saw the red waypoint pop up on her HUD indicating where the Hive was dropping in. The Drifter in her ear, her team racing beside her, they strode into battle crashing into the Hive, raining motes of Dark down onto them. They compete against each other trying to get the most, to bank and send a Taken Knight or Ogre to the other team. Bülvai and Revenant preferred to bank several small blockers back to back, strength in numbers after all. The portal primes and Valia runs for it, flying straight into Darkness, fearless and confident.

The Drifter praises her Dark deeds over comms "Give em' hell for me, and I might make it worth your while later."

Her cheeks run hot, "Not now." she says flustered.

He replies with a mischievous chuckle. 

She sees the opposing team on the other side of the battlefield, two of them are carrying a large haul of motes and headed straight to their bank. Enough for two Ogres. She raises her Worm rifle lining them up in her sights, it whispers back.

"There is no Light here." 

She snipes them both from where she stood before they could bank. The remaining two Guardians are now aware of her position and they're closing in on her, fast. She tosses her knife at one, stopping him in his tracks. The last one fires a few shots at her mid-range, but just barely grazing her, the bullets whizzed by her head. She needs to reload and she has less than five seconds left. 

"Fuck," she curses under her breath. "c'mon damn it."

The timer runs just as she readies her aim but nothing happens. In the moment she doesn't think and empties her clip into the other guardian. As soon as she does, the Drifter pulls her back screaming with excitement in her ear.

"What the hell was that?" she asked him. 

He doesn't even try to deny or hide it, he bent the rules for her and gave her extra time. "Couldn't help it, I just love seeing you get so bloodthirsty." 

She didn't like it, it felt wrong and dirty. No doubt about it, it was definitely cheating. There is nothing more satisfying than earning your victories through skill and wit and he took that from her. Not only that but it felt like favoritism. 

"If the other guardians notice...Drifter, my reputation will be ruined." 

"Don't sweat it, Hero, we won't make it a habit."

Her fireteam just finished clearing out a group of acolytes, leaving their motes of Dark lying on the ground for the taking. She runs in picking up the last of the motes and she hears the Drifter come over the comms again. "Bank those motes and you'll summon a primeval."

The rest of her fireteam are scattered across the field picking off stragglers. She calls out to them "Bank what you have now. It's showtime!"

Valia's heart starts to pound as they bank the last of their motes. Adrenaline coursing through her blood like a Dreg high on Ether. They ready their weapons and fall back into position. A blood curdling, ear-shattering screech cracks through the air as the veil to the ascendant realm is ripped opened bringing forth a massive Taken Primeval surrounded by wizards. She can feel its anger and hunger for their Light nipping at her skin beneath her armor like a cold winter chill. She feels her Light begin to fill her up, energy burns at her finger tips. She hums to herself.

_" This little Light of mine..."_

She vaults into the air releasing her Light down onto the Primeval sending a barrage of fiery blades down upon it, dealing critical damage.

 _"_ _I'm gonna let it shine."_

Landing back on her feet flawlessly. The opposing team tried to invade them and slow their progress constantly at this point. But their effort was futile, there was no getting past Valia and her Whisper as long as she had ammo. And each kill fed her rifle ever more. The rest of the match was like clockwork to her and her fireteam and before she knew it they had melted their Primeval. They continued this cycle for hours, long after Valia had filled her bounty for the Drifter. Eventually, Bülvai and Revenant grew weary of the fighting and retreated back into orbit shaking their heads at Valia's unwavering aggression.

After her team left her, Valia took the opportunity and finally allowed herself a reprieve from the fight. She left the game but remained on the derelict, waiting outside of the transmat bay. After sending in new opposing teams onto the field the Drifter joined her.

"I thought you were going to spend all night in there." he told her.

"I thought they would never leave."

He continued to walk ahead of her, stopping after a few steps and looking back at her over his shoulder beckoning her to follow. And she did. They walked through his ship in silence before he stopped at a door leading into a room she'd never been in before. He turned to her before walking in.

"There is someone I think you should meet." He said with a smirk.

Though it did not fill her with anticipation but with a sense of dread. He turned back toward the door and opened it and she walked inside. She crossed the threshold and heard the Drifter shut the door behind them. She stopped cold in her tracks not believing who she was seeing.

"Shin Malphur!" was the only thing she could say.


End file.
